Eave trough cover



Patented Oct. 2, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE EAVE TROUGH COVER Julius Lipshaw, Detroit, Mich.

Application ctober25, 1947, Serial No. 782,186

' 9 Claims. (Cl. 10S- 30) This invention relates to an eave trough cover and has particularly to do with a guard for keeping leaves and other foreign matter out of the water passage.

It is Well known that in the fall of the year leaves have a tendency to blow on to the roofs of dwellings and to be carried into the eave trough Where they clog the drains or pass into the downspouts to block passage of water.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a guard for these eave troughs or gutters which will permit water to flow from the roof into the trough at all times, but which will prevent leaves from entering the flow passages.

It is another object to provide a leaf guard which will be readily applied. 4 There are many ways that the guard to be disclosed could be applied to a metal trough, but it is important that a workman be able to apply the guard quickly and safely since a ladder is usually required to reach the portions of the structures on which these troughs are located. It is important that a fastening means be provided which requires no drilling or holes and no applications of screws or bolts. The present invention contemplates a holding means for eave trough covers which is easily applied and easily removed and which may be applied by an unskilled worker.

Other objects and features of the invention will be apparent in the following description and claims.

Brief description of the drawings:

Figure 1 illustrates in perspective an eave trough applied to the sloping roof of a shingled structure with the protecting device in position.

Figure 2 is a sectional view on line 2--2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an end view illustrating the manner in which the clamping means or holding means for the protecting guard is inserted.

Referring to Figure 1 a metal eave trough of standard construction is shown at ID attached to a dwelling indicated generally at I2. It will be noted that the trough has an inturned edge I 4. The guard to be applied to the trough consists of a screen I6 which preferably has a metal frame I8 around the edges thereof. The mesh of the screen I6 should be fairly wide to permit water to flow freely therein from the roof. Leaves will come to rest on top of the screen and there will dry out and blow away.

The clamping device to hold the guard in position consists of a plate 2l) which is roughly trangular in shape with holes 22 provided therein to permit the passage of water under heavy'ilow conditions. Formed at the top` of the plate 20 is an inturned flange 23 which provides a groove 24 dimensioned to receive the edge of the frame I8 as shown in Figure 2. At one corner of the triangular plate 20 is a notch 26 just below the ilange 23. This notch 25 receives the inturned edge I4 of the trough and thus positions that corner of the plate. At the bottom corner of the plate a leg 3l! is pivoted at 3|. The lower end 32 of the leg 3D is bent at right angles thereto and adapted to engage a corner 34 of the eave trough I 0. A stop 35 shown most clearly in Figure 3 co-operates with a shoulder 38 on leg 30 to limit the movement of the leg with respect to the plate 20.

The plate and leg 30 are soV dimensioned that when the leg is aligned with the edge 39 of the plate In the distance between the notch 26 and the end of the leg is slightly greater than the distance between the inturned edge I4 and the corner 34 of the trough. In attaching the screen guards to the eave troughs, the fastening plates 29 are rst slipped over each end (Figure 2) of the section of the protecting screen. Then the entire assembly is positioned relative to the trough, as shown in Figure 3, and the inturned edge I4 is inserted in the notch 23 of the triangular plates at each end of the assembly. At the same time the foot of the leg 3G is positioned at the corner 34 of the trough. Pressure may then be applied at the point P, Figure 3, and this pressure will force the leg 30 and the triangular plate 20 into a toggle or over center movement in which the parts end up as shown in Figure 1 and as shown in dotted lines in Figure 3. During this action the metal trough may be distorted slightly but will return to its normal position. The protecting screen is thereafter held firmly on the eave trough until it is intentionally removed by lifting the point P to cause the reverse toggle action. f

What I claim is:

1. A screen protector assembly for eave troughs comprising a screen section dimensioned to lt along the top edge of a trough, a clamping member on said screen having a portion for engaging the trough adjacent the top thereof, and a second member pivoted to said clamping member adapted to lodge in a lower corner of the trough and dimensioned with respect to the iirst member such that the overall distance between the said corner of the trough and the top portion thereof engaged by the clamping member is less than the over-all dimension of the iirst and second members.

2. A holder for an eave trough screen protector comprising a rst member having a groove to receive a portion of the screen member, a notch on said rst member to receive an inturned. portion of a metal eave trough and a toggle member pivoted to rst member adapted to co-operate with the first member and with a point of location on an eave trough to clamp the fastening means within the confines of the eave trough.

3. An eave trough protector assembly comprising a screen to lie horizontally over the trough at top level, a clamping means including a grooved plate receiving an end of said screen, means on said plate to engage an eave trough at one side thereof, and a toggle leg pivoted at one end to said plate to engage a bottom corner of an eave trough to clamp a screen in position.

4. A clamping device for an eave trough screen protector comprising a first member engaging the screen and a portion of a trough, and a second member co-operating with said first member to engage another portion of a trough, said members being relatively movable to exert an expanding pressure on the trough to hold the members in clamping position.

5. In combination an eave trough of sheet metal having one edge adjacent the top turned toward the inside, a screen overlying the trough opening and the inturned edge, a triangular clamping plate provided with a groove along one edge engaging an end of said screen and having a notch engaging said inturned edge whereby the plate depends into the trough, and a pivot leg connected to said plate at the apex of the triangular plate opposite to the grooved edge, said leg extending in a direction away from said notch and being dimensioned to contact the inside of the eave trough at a point opposed to said inturned edge and to exert expansive force between the inturned edge and the point of contact of said leg when said leg is moved to an over center position between said points.

6. In a combination as defined in claim 5, a plate of such dimensions that the cross sectional area of the trough is larger to permit passage of water below the depending plate.

7. In a combination as defined in claim 5, a plate having apertures in the depending portion thereof to permit passage of water through the plate.

8. A screen protector assembly for 'eave troughs comprising a screen section dimensioned to fit along the top edge of a trough, a clamping member on said screen having a portion for engaging the trough adjacent the top thereof when one edge of the screen section is engaged with the trough andthe other is raised from the other edge of the trough, and a second member movably fastened to said first member engaging said trough when the screen is in raised position, said member being responsive to a closing motion of said screen to a level position on said trough to create a locking pressure on the device in association with the trough.

9. A screen protector assembly as defined in claim 8 in which the locking pressure is released upon pulling the free edge of the screen upward with a positive force.

JULIUS LIPSHAW.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 471,427 La Vallet Mar. 22, 1892 2,209,741 Sullivan July 30, 1940 

